At Boys & Girls Clubs of San Leandro Child Safety is Job No. 1

Ensuring child safety is fundamental to the mission of Boys & Girls Clubs of San Leandro. Read more about our commitment below. 

The Safety and Wellbeing of Young People is Our Number One Priority

We work every day to create a safe, inclusive and fun environment so kids can have every opportunity to be successful in life. We have no tolerance for inappropriate behavior of any kind, including child sexual abuse or misconduct, and we put resources behind that stance.  

Culture of Safety

Boys & Girls Clubs of San Leandro continually updates robust safety policies, programs and training for staff and volunteers to promote child safety and protect young people from threats in our society. These resources include but are not limited to:

  • Annual Safety Assessments 
  • Member Surveys 
  • Incident Review & Preparedness 
  • Continuous Quality Improvement Methods & Trainings 

Our Safety Policies

The safety of young people at Boys & Girls Clubs of San Leandro is always our top priority. Youth who are mentally and physically safe are better able to learn, grow, and thrive. We work with Boys & Girls Clubs of America continuously to enhance safety policies, practices, and trainings to ensure they are centered on youth’s needs. There is nothing more important to us than keeping children safe and protected.

Boys & Girls Clubs do not tolerate inappropriate behavior of any kind, including child sexual abuse or misconduct. From strict adherence to policies and guidelines within Club facilities and staffing structure, to equipping young people with the critical thinking and social-emotional skills to make healthy, safe choices, ensuring Club members are safe is the first step to their success.

Boys & Girls Clubs of America advocated for the passage of the U.S. PROTECT ACT, which improved background screening systems and access, and is proud to partner with the following organizations to develop safety practices that benefit ALL youth-serving organizations.

24-hour Toll-free Child Safety Hotline

We encourage all staff, members and families to report any incident or situation they feel is unsafe. Through our national partnership with Praesidium, one of the nation’s leading safety experts, San Leandro Boys & Girls Clubs members and staff have access to a confidential 24-hour toll-free Child Safety Hotline at866-607-SAFE (7233) or SafeClub@Praesidiuminc.com.  

Mandatory Background Checks

Mandatory criminal background checks are required upon hire and annually for every staff and board member at San Leandro Boys & Girls Clubs. In addition, criminal background checks are required for any volunteer who has direct, repetitive contact with children. All potential employees and volunteers are run through the livescan California Department of Justice (DOJ) registry for state, Federal, and national sex offender background checks. 

Required Immediate Reporting

San Leandro Boys & Girls Clubs staff and volunteers are all mandated reporters and are required to report any critical incident/safety concern to local authorities immediately. We are also required to report any critical incident to Boys & Girls Clubs of America within 24 hours. 

Mandatory Annual Safety Assessments

We employ a multi-tiered safety assessment approach  to ensure we continually make improvements to safety at our Club(s). 

Safety Trainings

Ongoing training and supervision of staff are critical. We participate in a wide variety of child safety training through online courses, seminars, conference, webinars including local trainings in partnership with but not limited to; SLUSD, SLZUSD, First responders, San Leandro Police Department, Alameda County of Education, Child Protective Services. We also engage leading third-party safety experts to provide guidance for our policies and approaches, including Praesidium, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and the National Children’s Advocacy Center. 

Safety Committee

San Leandro Boys & Girls Clubs has a dedicated Board-led Safety Committee to provide input and guidance on local policies and safety strategies. Priorities and initiatives include: 

  • Improve Youth Outcomes Initiative: Physical, Social & Emotional Safety Indicators 
  • Increase consistent level of engagement in safety trainings for professionals and volunteers 
  • Maintain High Quality Child Safety Assessment 

Mandatory Employee Reference

Any employee interested in moving to another Boys & Girls Club is required to have a reference from their previous Club, even if the Clubs are within the same community.    

State and Local Laws

We comply with federal, state and local safety laws, including those impacting facilities and vehicles.  

Continued Commitment

In July 2020, Boys & Girls Club organizations voted to adopt additional safety measures to further improve safety within our Clubs. Though many of these practices were already commonplace across our Movement, this vote made them mandatory for all Clubs. These include more stringent reference and background checks, enhanced Safety Committee requirements, stronger communication of key safety resources and information, and more. With unprecedented majority, on July 26, 2021, local Boys & Girls Clubs voted in record number to adopt additional membership requirements that further enhance child safety, implementing recommendations from RAINN that began in 2020 and will continue over the next two years – a demonstration of our continued commitment to keeping kids safe. 

  

Nationally, Boys & Girls Clubs of America has advocated for passage of the U.S. PROTECT Act to improve background screening systems and access. The national organization has also partnered with the FBI, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and the Centers for Disease Control to support the development of safety practices that benefit ALL youth-serving organizations. 
 
America’s young people deserve nothing less than our constant focus on their safety and our firm commitment to protect every child who is entrusted to our care at San Leandro Boys & Girls Clubs. To learn more about our national safety policies and actions, please visit Boys & Girls Clubs of America’s Child Safety page. 

Great Futures Start Near You

We have 23 locations across San Leandro and San Lorenzo for children ages 4-18.

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